THE countdown to Christmas starts in your lunchbreak – festive sandwiches are hitting the shelves everywhere.
From Aldi and Pret to Marks & Spencer and Starbucks, retailers are hoping to tempt shoppers with a seasonal treat.
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There are returning classics such as Pret’s Christmas Lunch Sandwich, as well as innovative new flavours.
Lynsey Hope puts them to the test and gives each a mark out of ten .
M&S – Christmas Club Sandwich £4.50, 613 cals
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TRADITIONAL sarnie has been supersized with 12 layers.
This has it all – turkey, ham hock (read bacon really), stuffing, cabbage and cranberry sauce.
I liked the golden toasted bread and pickled red cabbage but struggled to pick out the promised gravy mayo.
Heavily calorific though, so this should perhaps be reserved as a treat.
RATING: 9
Tesco – Turkey and Trimmings, £3, 469 cals
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TURKEY breast, mayonnaise, sausage, cranberry sauce, sage and onion stuffing and sweetcure bacon in soft, malted bread.
Given this is a fair bit cheaper than some others, it is very impressive.
There was lots of turkey and a noticeable amount of cranberry sauce.
Delicious but not at all good for the waist.
RATING: 8
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Pret – Christmas Lunch Sandwich, £4.75, 549 cals
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MADE up of thick slices of British turkey in a port and orange cranberry sauce, teamed with a herby pork stuffing, baby spinach leaves, mayo and crispy onions, this is a real winner.
There was enough meat for a proper carnivore, the bread was soft but not so much that it fell apart and I liked all the fresh ingredients.
All very festive.
RATING: 10
Lidl – Turkey Feast, £1.99, 457 cals
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AN amazing price from Lidl, this contains a good amount of British turkey and streaky bacon.
I wasn’t overwhelmed by a festive feeling, though. If you closed your eyes you could have been eating just a regular chicken and bacon sandwich sold on any other day of the year.
A tasty enough snack though. For less than two quid, a decent lunch.
RATING: 5
Costa – Turkey & Trimmings Toastie, £4.25, 443 cals
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A VERY festive offering from the coffee chain, this is a really impressive bite.
The instant taste of turkey makes you feel like you’re tucking into Christmas dinner and I liked that it was warm, not cold.
There was a good amount of filling and it was not at all dry.
The crispy top was a nice touch and I’ll definitely be going back to Costa for another.
RATING: 7
Morrisons – Christmas Lunch Sandwich, £2.85, 427 cals
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THE best thing about this was the delicious cranberry chutney.
There was plenty of turkey and I loved the stuffing.
Just the right amount of mayonnaise. Not as cheap as Aldi or Lidl but I reckoned it was worth the 86p more.
It was more filling and felt so much more Christ-massy.
Christmas has certainly come early with this delicious Morrisons sarnie.
RATING: 10
Waitrose – Turkey, Stuffing and Bacon, £4, 496 cals
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A GOOD amount of filling and the flavours seem to have been nicely balanced here.
It feels very Christmassy with every bite you take.
If I had one complaint, though, I would maybe say the bacon was just a little too chewy for my liking.
I had to pick some out before finishing this sandwich and, for £4, I would have expected better than that.
RATING: 7
Asda – Jolly Festive Feast, £3, 555 cals
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MORE malted bread with turkey, Cumberland pork sausage, mayo, cranberry and port sauce, pork, sage and onion stuffing and beechwood smoked bacon.
This sarnie also contained fried onions, which were a bit overpowering.
It’s a competitive price but wasn’t my favourite for flavour.
It packed too much filling, making it hard to eat without it going all over your face.
RATING: 5
Starbucks – Festive Feast Panini, £4.89, 530 cals
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I DIDN’T think there was much inside this panini for the price – a festive feast it really is not.
The smoked bacon was lovely but there was not enough turkey and I struggled to taste the promised turkey gravy.
Not enough cranberry sauce and the ciabatta was heavy and bloating.
So, all in all, not great.
RATING: 4
Aldi – Turkey Feast £1.99, 511 cals
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BACK for another festive season, Aldi’s turkey special packs a great flavour.
It really reminded me of tucking into a sumptuous Christmas dinner.
If I was being really picky, though, I would say it could have benefitted from some fresh ingredients – maybe a bit of vegetable in there.
But overall I did really enjoy tucking into this sandwich.
RATING: 9
Sainsbury’s Free From – Turkey Feast, £2.95, 455 cals
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YOU could soon tell this was gluten-free, as the bread had a different texture.
It also felt a little drier.
That said, the turkey breast, pork, sage and onion stuffing and cranberry chutney were all delicious, so you quickly forgot the bread.
This is a real winner if you want a “free from” festive sarnie.
Sainsbury’s had a great variety of options for vegans and veggies too.
RATING: 7
Amazon Fresh – Turkey Feast on Malted, £3.30, 533 cals
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A LOVELY sandwich, this one, but it just didn’t have that Christmassy feeling – it could have been a regular turkey sandwich, really.
To be fair, there was a pretty good amount of filling – although this was a bit squashed toward the front on the packet and there was less of it to be found at the back.
RATING: 6
